Mixing Up Stuff

Just a normal interwoven, recordin', left-justified, goat-ridin', polyamory-discussin' day

I'm in the recording studio. Not my modest bonus room rig at home. A commercial one down the street near Belmont University. It's strange.

I spent my entire adult life in recording studios. I seldom darken their door anymore. One, I work in my small home studio, created after we left our previous home and studio complex, The Art House eight years ago. Two, when I have ventured outside my own comfortable space it seems to cause me, how do you say it? Too much stress?

And it does. Fortunately, I'm on break. We are recording our audio book. Andi is in the booth. It's her turn at the mic. There's a producer in Connecticut on a screen talking in her ear along with an engineer. They are kind and helpful.

While I wait to read my next chapter, 5, "On Becoming a Light in the City" I'm working on securing permissions for quotes and lyrics used in my memoir, Roots & Rhythm (scheduled to be published in February of 2025). You say, what? Yes, I am essentially working on two books at once in various states of post-writing development. We are recording, Why Everything That Doesn't Matter, Matters So Much.

I do get confused sometimes. As Andi has said to me, "I think you're mixing up your memoir with our book." No doubt. But then, that's sort of my thing. Mixing up stuff.

Every day is mix and remix.

For example, I just edited a photo of me with my grandpa Williamson riding goats—my dad standing by, cigarette in mouth, Ray Bans, making sure I don't tumble. This will be in the generous 32 pages of photographs contained in Roots & Rhythm.

Just wrote a fellow back representing Wendell Berry's poem, The Peace of Wild Things. I was excited to see that he'd replied so quickly following my permission request to excerpt the poem in Roots & Rhythm. No yea or nay, yet. He just wanted to know if I would agree to print it left justified instead of centered. I thought centering the poem looked good. But I guess his request is something like the musician finding out people were duplicating a song in mono instead of stereo.

And, I opened the email from fellow CT Podcast producer, Clarissa Moll, with a link to The Bulletin podcast. I appeared on an episode airing today, Three's a Crowd: Trump wins in Iowa, Israel goes to court, and polyamory is trending. If you’re looking for a substantive, news of the week/current events podcast, that isn’t so serious the Jesus-followin’ hosts can’t laugh (or admit their own folly), this is it.

I joined to talk for a moment about my podcast that Bulletin co-producer/host, Mike Cosper also co-produces, Music & Meaning. Before my moment, I was asked to join the bit on polyamory. I told them, I’m a musician, are you sure you booked the right guest? Fortunately, I had just been brain-deep in the life of the unethical polyamorous, Augustine. I found something to add.

Okay, I gotta go. My turn. Quick twitch, brain shift.

Peace to you. Have a safe, restful weekend.